Prunus americana (American plum)

The American or wild plum is a small ornamental deciduous tree reaching 25’ in height and spread. Its white flowers in spring and its handsome wand-like branches in winter make it a popular residential landscape tree. It has a single or multi-stemmed trunk with beautiful reddish-gray exfoliating bark. Leaves are alternate, simple, to elliptical, with a sharply pointed tip 3–4” long. It has showy, fragrant flowers in early spring and a reddish purple to yellow-brown edible fruit in mid- to late summer. The sour and sweet fruit is eaten fresh and is used in preserves, jellies, jam, and wine. Flood tolerant; low maintenance. The roots are shallow, widely spread, and send up suckers.

The American plum is native to North America from Quebec south to Florida and west to New Mexico and Idaho. The suckers from the root system make it effective in stabilizing stream banks and gullies. Many birds and animals eat the fruit, and deer feed on twigs and leaves. The plum is a host plant for various butterfly species, including the coral hairstreak, and for various moth species, including the American dagger moth.